This article was originally published on GameSpot's sister site onGamers.com, which was dedicated to esports coverage.

　　This is why we can't have nice things. Because every now and then, predicaments like this arise. As some of you may have already known, tickets for a Russian Dota 2 tournament known as The National were recently being sold on the Dota Store. Purportedly, 3000 purchases were made. Ordinarily, this wouldn't be particularly noteworthy. Tickets and tournaments, after all, go hand in hand. But just hold onto that snippet of information for a moment.

　　The National apparently offered a pretty sweet deal to the winner: $2500 in cash, sponsorship, a monthly salary of $500, professional training, contracts galore, uniforms and more. Not the most prestigious deal that esports might have heard of but certainly a decent bargain. The games took place. A team came out victorious. And ... nothing happened. Not a single cent was paid to the winning players. That money from the tickets? The entrance fees? None of it reached the winners. The organizer was apparently unable to procure the required sponsors and ended up spending all the accumulated cash on personal living expenses.

　　Tragic.

　　Full story can be found here.